Earlier this week leaders of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations gathered at a summit with the United States government in Palm Springs, California, to discuss a variety of political and economic issues.
U.S. President Barack Obama and the other government officials were also joined by a trio of CEOs to talk about economic growth.
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“Our business leaders really provided an enormous color and specificity to the ASEAN leaders about how they could achieve their objectives to expand their entrepreneurial culture,” Penny Pritzker, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, said. “And that is really commercial diplomacy at work.”
The digital economy provides an opportunity for major American companies to work with small and medium enterprises in ASEAN nations and other developing economies, said IBM CEO Ginni Rometty.
And technology can be leveraged to create new SMEs and help governments deliver citizen services like healthcare and education, said Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins.
But in order to foster “a more diversified economy,” world class technology must be accessible to SMEs so they can create digital services and products, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told Devex.
While the summit was organized to convene government leaders, it also provided a platform to discuss plans to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation for sustainable and inclusive development in the region.
To learn more, and hear about a new initiative President Obama announced, watch the video above.
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About the author
Catherine Cheneycatherinecheney
Catherine Cheney is a Senior Reporter for Devex. She covers the West Coast of the U.S., focusing on the role of technology and innovation in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. And she frequently represents Devex as a speaker and moderator. Prior to joining Devex, Catherine earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yale University, worked as a web producer for POLITICO and reporter for World Politics Review, and helped to launch NationSwell. Catherine has reported from all over the world, and freelanced for outlets including the Atlantic and the Washington Post. She is also the West Coast ambassador for the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit that trains and connects journalists to cover responses to problems.
